Happy New Year

I don't know if Joel would call homemade pizza, chili, seeing how many books he can get his family to read him, and how many times he can ride along with his brothers to Tractor Supply a New Year's Resolution...but at least it will be easy for me to plan the menu!

Joel has had about 4 very happy days. He has ate well and played and walked around almost like normal. He's a little wobbly and he's only been knocked over under a whole hand!

This week his hair was shedding so fast, all that was left was a mohawk on top, so I put him on a stool in the garage and popped a few chocolate chips in his mouth and buzzed that off. Our fellows have had buzzes through the summer, so it is not really too big a change for him. He rubbed his head and said, "Mom shaved it off".

On Tuesday we'll head back for the counts to be checked, and if all is in range, we should be admitted on Wednesday for his 2nd round of chemo. I've tried to talk a little about going back to the hospital and he doesn't seem too happy about that - so please pray that he would have a peaceful attitude and feel comfort that Terry and I will be with him!

Psalm 90:12 says, "Teach us so to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom". We really only have today. We have no guarantee of tomorrow, and how vital it is that we cherish each moment that we have with our children. How important it is that we apply our hearts to wisdom in serving the Lord Jesus and loving our families and those around us. Our prayer is that the Lord will be glorified in the midst of this crisis in our lives, and that His truth will go forth from our lives. Once again, Happy New Year.....

"In the shadow of thy wings..."

Psalm 57:1 says, "Have mercy upon me, O God, have mercy upon me; for my soul trusteth in thee, and in the shadow of thy wings will I trust, till these afflictions overpass." This is our desire, that we will trust in the shadow of his wings.

We returned to the clinic today for the pre admit appointment. Joel's counts were within expectations except for his platlet count. His count was below the level that it needs to be for his next round of chemotherapy. The doctor feels that the count will come up on its own over the next few days. We are scheduled for another pre admit appointment on January 2, and then, Lord willing, we will check in to the hospital for the next treatment on January 3.

We know that God is in control and we are resting in that as we deal with this postponement. Joel has had several good days. He has played with his siblings and has walked some around the house. He was entertaining his brothers and sisters last night with a little 'shuffle' in the living room. We are grateful for each day with him. In the midst of this trial you begin to sift out the things that really matter from those things that are temporary.

Please pray that his platlet count will come up over the next few days and that we will be ready for the next hospital stay.

Christmas Eve

Greetings in Jesus' name to Family, Friends and so many that we have not yet met.

Psalm 111: "Praise ye the LORD. I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation. The works of the LORD are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein. His work is honourable and glorious: and his reghteousness endureth for ever. He hath made his wonderful works to be remembered: the LORD is gracious and full of compassion. He hath given meat unto them that fear him: he will ever be mindful of his covenant. He hath shewed his people the power of his works, that he may give them the heritage of the heathen. The works of his hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness. He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever."

It is scriptures like this that get us through the trial that we are experiencing. My flesh is so weak and my humaness wants all to be fixed and to have our 'normal' life routine again. Today I found myself in despair and wondering where God was, but it wasn't long until, as one we've heard write, we got back up on the "Rock". May he give us grace for each moment.

We do have plenty and our cup is running over when we stop and count our blessings. Many of you we haven't met yet, so we thought we would give you a peek at our family. And to those who know us you might find out something you didn't know.

The Lord has blessed our family with 13 blessings and desiring all that God has for us, the Lord gave Terry and I grace to build upon the truth that children are his reward. We live on a small farm and have many endeavours that keep a large family busy.

Caleb and Daniel: 19 year old twins. The Lord has blessed them with musical abilities, violin, viola, and piano. They have been taking string lessons from a UCO professor for about seven years. They taught themselves piano and have been playing for 12 years. The Lord has provided a studio here at our home and superior high tech equipment so that they can hopefully produce a CD with music to glorify the Lord. This past summer all the big and little guys built us a barn with a gamble roof.

Recently they have had some small construction jobs with dear friends and right now they are framing houses. They are like having three 'Terry's' around. They can accomplish most any 'job' that mom has for them. They recently purchased a new (to them 1995) Chevy pickup along with Elijah and dad pitched some too!

Bethany-17 years old. She has many projects going on and also is one of my main homeworker helpers. She keeps her family stocked with fresh bread almost daily. Bethany is the keeper of our nubian goat herd of 12. We are milking 2 right now through the winter and possibly we are going to have 12 babies to tend in the spring. Bethany has a vision to breed labs and has a 2 year old female. She has done alot of research and is looking forward to the Lord fulfilling that vision. Bethay enjoys the violin too, although with the schedule we've had in the last 6 months, her practice time has been little or nothing.

Elijah - 16 years old. Elijah is a stout, hard and industrias worker. He has a vision in the mornings and by evening he sees great new things that can happen around here! Elijah has recently purchased two registered limousin heifers. One is bred and due in March and the other is around 10 months. He hopes to show the 10 month in spring. Elijah has a talent of fixing things and making things from scratch. He is handy to have on the farm. Elijah is very sensitive to the needs of others and seeks out how he can bring a smooth path to his mom. We need to mention that Elijah rode a bull this summer at a youth rodeo. His parents hope that might be the last ride. (It was short, but he did it!)

Anna - 14 years old. Anna, our gracious Anna, she seems to float around our home on wings to meet the needs of her brothers and sisters. Sometimes I don't know if she can stretch any more, but she always comes through. Anna makes our goat cheese and keeps big brothers stocked up on desserts for their lunch. Anna enjoys spending time with Joel and taking care of baby Mercy! She has a big, I mean big, black Golden Retriever/Lab that she enjoys playing with on the farm.

Micah - 12 years old. Micah is one of 'mom's men' when the big guys are off to work. He enjoys farm jobs outside that his dad gives him, and he and Josh are in charge of our chickens. Micah has a vision of cattle too, although he is a little behind Elijah on getting his herd started. I've seen spiritaul growth in Micah this year and I praise the Lord for that.

Andrew - 10 years old. 'Dewey' (Andrew's nickname) is a hard worker too! He works with Bethany around the goats and is a professional goat milker! Andrew likes horses even though we don't have one right now.

Joshua - 8 years old. Just give Josh a BB gun and a pack of BB's and he will be fixed up. Joshua is dad's main garden worker.

Jeremiah - 6 years old. We call Josh and Jeremiah, the two J's - Jeremiah is an adventuresome fella. He likes to hunt and jump on the trampoline - he calls it Bull riding because he rides his big brother Elijah.

Hosanna - almost 5. She is our sweet little 'daughter of Eve'. Hosanna already knows how to take care of babies and all about being a 'home worker'. She loves taking care of Mercy and is also one of dad's garden helpers as well!

Joel and Josiah - 3 year old twins. What a pair. Joel, even though he is the first born twin, tends to be a little more laid back and Josiah wants to run the show. Joel calls Josiah, 'Siah', and Josiah calls Joel, 'Balley'. They have great fun together, they enjoyed helping dad plant the garden this past summer. Josiah doesn't seem too sad about his twin's situation. He has alot of playmates to fill in the gap. It's mostly hard on mom, because she remembers all the things they have done together. They loved swinging toether this past summer and fall and jumping on the trampoline. They would ride on Elijah with their one arm waving in the air. They would push their dumptrucks together at high speed along the beaten paths, when all was well with Joel - they certainly were buddies stuck together. They still have fun together, but since Joel can't manuever like Josiah, Josiah brings laughter and smiles to Joel. It has been so sweet to hear Josiah pray for Joel. "Oh Lord, heal Balley", repeating after his mom.

Mercy-9 months. What a joy is this little girl. She is adored by her brothers and sisters and is a wonderful blessing to all of us. She is carried around and pampered by all of the older children. There are times when she is almost pulled apart by her older brothers trying to be the first to hold the little lou lou, (one of her nicknames). She is crawling around and trying to put everything she can in her mouth. She is standing up and almost ready to start walking.

Terry is still at Sara Lee in OKC. What a tremendous boss that he has, and co-workers. Their support and understanding in our time of need has been a blessing to our family. Thank you, thank you! He has also enjoyed leading our little home church along with the other two fathers. He is seeking to return to the simplicity of the new testament, and the 'church that is in thy house'.

As for me, I'm blessed and I want to be more like Jesus - my how our trials show us our true state and our lack of faith. O Lord, refine me....

This is the group that is taking Joel's journey along with him. Joel has had an up and down weekend. He did not eat very well until Sunday afternoon. He seems to have lost some weight and we really ask that you pray for his appetite to increase. He is due to go back to the clinic on Wednesday to see the doctor, and if all is well he will be admitted to the hospital on Thursday for his next round of chemotherapy. He has enjoyed riding in his brother's truck, and he is also entertaining his grandparents from Texas for the next few days.

May you all be blessed with the presence of the Christ of Christmas, the one who was born in a manger and proclaimed by the angels to be the savior of the world.

Praise God from whom all Blessings Flow

Our hearts are giving praise to God, Joel had a good report at his checkup on Thursday. All is steady and climbing back up. His red count was 8.9. We are prayerfully desiring him to hold on to that til next week when he has his chemo treatment. His white count was in the 7000 range which the shots we are giving him has increased, Monday it was 38. A normal healthy person's range would be 15,000, we will give him shots for three more nights and that will give him a good boost for next week. He ate very well yesterday which was a praise. So overall the checkup was great! We are also thankful that there has not been any fevers. God has surely had mercy upon us.

Joel is holding up well, since he's not very active he is loosing his muscle and meat, so he does look very thin even though his weight remains steady. He takes several short naps during the day and continues to interact with his brothers and sisters.

Our whole household is suffering with coughs, colds, runny noses and sore throats, so that would be a special request, that the Lord would strengthen our immune systems and grant heath quickly. Baby Mercy has been pretty sick too.

For many of you who know the cancer journey with friends and family it seems sometimes to be a rollercoaster ride. I guess the thing that I want to be enabled to do is to keep focused on the Lord and stay upon Jehovah, to have a thankfulness, to be a joyful mother of children and to seek to be Terry's helpmeet. It all is so overwhelming when the enemy blinds me to look at my circumstances instead of the Saviour.

The rest of the children are doing well. Bethany and Anna are Mom's right hand young ladies. Many times Joel only wants one of them. They are seeking to serve their family too.

With the CBC checks twice a week which takes about 3 hours out of the day (travel time included) it is an adjustment to the schedules of our home. We sometimes get backed up on chores, laundry and food preperation. So that would be an extra prayer also that the Lord would give us grace, patience and brotherly love amidst our own family.

We are looking forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus and being together. Again we are filled with gratful hearts for your investing in our family through prayers, cards, emails, gifts, and much more. I don't know if I can ever get all the thank you cards out, but please know we thank you and pray a special blessing your way.

Rejoicing in God's Mercy!

Through much tribulation...

Monday was CBC day for Joel, his red count was 9.3 and his white count was 38. Extremely low, but normal for a chemo patient. The nurse said he might go even lower before he starts climbing back up. Our big prayer is that he would not get a fever as that will be a trip to the E.R. for 48 hours to determine if he has an infection or not.

He is holding up well, playing with siblings, eating small meals and still exhibiting the sin nature, he could really use some discipline at times, but it is hard on Mom and Dad in this condition. So may the Lord give us wisdom to carry out that as needed.

We go back on Thursday for another CBC and will have to figure out because of Christmas on Monday and his scheduled chemo treatment on Thursday the 28th (a hospital stay of 3 days) whether or not he will have to have another transfusion. They do not want him to get lower than an 8 on his red count, so it's very likely he will have one Friday or Saturday. We'll give another update Thursday sometime.

Again we are so humbled with all the support of prayer, the encouraging stories that many have shared, and the fun things that Joel has received, has been a blessing. Also the way God is providing for our daily needs. What a mighty God we serve. It is so comforting that he is in control and is orchestrating all this for his glory and his kingdom. It is through much tribulation we must enter the kingdom.

I'm praying for you all, that the Lord would make your cups spill over with great grace because you all have blessed us so much! Keep praying for this little soldier! With much love and thanksgiving to each of you!